Governor Still Tries To Sell School Ideas

Jeb Bush Doesn't Want Homes Built If The State's Schools Are Crowded.

August 10, 2001|By Pamela Mercer, Sentinel Staff Writer

Hoping to revive a growth-management initiative that died in the Legislature, Gov. Jeb Bush vowed Thursday to push for better planning to ensure that rapid residential development does not overwhelm Florida's public schools.

The governor outlined his strategy to a gathering of the Florida Association of Realtors in Lake Buena Vista and, later, at an elementary school in Osceola County. He said he would propose a state law to mandate such intergovernmental cooperation.

Thursday marked the first time since the legislative session ended in May that the governor spoke at length about managing the state's growth, a topic he has championed as one of his top priorities.

Bush and his allies pushed to block developers from erecting homes in areas with no existing schools. But lawmakers adjourned without a final vote on the legislation, delivering a political blow to Bush as he prepared to launch his 2002 re-election campaign.

The bill drew criticism from home builders fearful of restraints on their business. Opponents in the Legislature argued that they needed more time to approve what would amount to an overhaul of Florida's growth-management laws.

HOUSE, SENATE DISAGREED

House and Senate leaders also could not agree on whether school districts should need approval by voters before imposing new taxes to build schools.

The governor largely steered clear of using the phrase "growth management" in his remarks Thursday, alluding instead to the need for "joint planning" by business and political leaders, county officials and school administrators.

Local governments could get incentives by the state to ensure that new housing developments are built where there already are schools, roads, water and sewers to serve that new population, Bush said. Developers, too, would benefit from such incentives, while those who build in isolated areas would face extra costs.

Already, he said, the state Department of Community Affairs is working on a model that local governments can use to plan together. He cautioned that it could be many months before the concept can be converted to legislation.

"It'll take two years to get a proposal," said Bush, adding that he may ask the Legislature next year to give at least tacit approval to the idea.

The governor did not specify how the state would pay for such incentives. However, during his visit to Deerwood Elementary School in Osceola County, Bush suggested he would support more state and local funding for districts struggling with growth.

School officials in Osceola, one of the state's fastest-growing districts, said they hoped the governor's stance would force the Legislature to give districts more leeway in raising money or setting local taxes.

Currently, Tallahassee sets property-tax rates for schools and bases its funding on growth projections that repeatedly have underestimated the student population in Osceola.

"I'm very optimistic that the governor recognizes . . . our problem," said David Stone, the School Board chairman. "With the governor on our side, I think the Legislature will come up with whatever [fund-raising] formula we need."

HOME SELLERS WARY

Bush's remarks drew cautious praise from home sellers, who had disagreed with parts of the governor's proposal.

"He made it clear he wanted to work with us," said Michael Dooley, vice president of the Realtor group. The notion of tying growth to the availability of schools first surfaced in Orange County under former county Chairman Mel Martinez, who resigned earlier this year to run the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development for the governor's brother, President Bush.

Martinez's successor, Rich Crotty, was appointed by Gov. Bush partly because of his support for the idea, but the new chairman has made few strides so far to implement it.

"We need to get the School Board involved, have joint planning with the county and the School Board and things like that," said Crotty, who attended a lunch with Bush on Thursday. "But we don't have a specific plan on the table yet. We're still in the conversation stage. This is not something we'll be able to throw out onto the table today."

LAWMAKERS PREDICT SUCCESS

Despite the opposition from developers, many legislators predict they eventually will reach a compromise that can provide enough schools to keep up with home construction.

"There's not many issues I agree with Jeb Bush on, but this idea of linking growth and planning, I think, is a good idea," said House Minority Leader Lois Frankel, D-West Palm Beach.

One of the sponsors of the failed legislation, Sen. Lee Constantine, R-Altamonte Springs, said he plans to reintroduce the measure when lawmakers meet in January. He attributed the problems this year to the fact that neither chamber had time to reach agreements on how school districts would pay for new construction.

"The political will is there," he said. "We're really going to have to work so that all sides are comfortable in the way the funding mechanism will occur. Outside of that, the basic ideas and concepts are unanimous."